Padded covers have been used for a number of years to protect the heads of golf clubs from banging into one another when they are carried in a golf bag. Typically, these head covers are made of soft, padded, bulky material and extend around the head and a relatively short distance over the end of the shaft, where the shaft is attached to the head. These head covers are closed at the top end (when the club is in the bag) and are open at the lower end, from which the shaft extends. The opening is relatively wide and permits easy placement of the cover on the golf club head, and easy removal of the cover from the club head when that particular club is desired for use in the play of the game of golf.
Head covers of the type described above have been considered adequate for most golf clubs. With the advent of large oversized driver "woods", however, heads constructed in this manner tend to become extremely bulky and occupy far more space than desirable. For oversized large drivers, head covers constructed in the conventional manner must be of relatively large diameter, with a large opening on the lower or open end to facilitate placement of the cover on the head and enable easy removal of the cover when the use of the club is desired. Since golfers typically use more than one wood or driver in the bag of clubs, large bulky head covers constitute a problem in their competition for space in the limited area which is available.
In addition to the bulk which results from conventional padded head covers, head covers of different sizes must be used for the club heads of corresponding different sizes. Thus, a head cover which is designed for a relatively small golf club head cannot be used for a large driver. If a head cover designed for a large driver is used on a golf club head which is relatively small, the oversized head cover does not fit snugly enough and is loose and easily dislodged.
Efforts to provide covers which conform to different shapes of golf club heads are disclosed in the United States patents to Shuford U.S. Pat. No. 3,727,659 and Diener U.S. Pat. No. 5,117,884. Both of these patents disclose golf club head covers which are made of resilient or stretch types of material. The cover of the Shuford is simply an elongated knit stocking of a cylindrical configuration. This stocking then is tied or otherwise closed at the upper end; and it then can be stretched over the club head by inserting a club through the other open end.
The cover of the Diener patent is made of a one piece molded flexible plastic material. The end into which the club head extends is molded to fit over a particular size and shape of golf club head. The molded head portion then is attached to an integral skirt portion, which is designed to de-form and then return to its original shape upon the insertion and removal of a golf club head. Molded plastic is used to form this cover. It is not made of soft resilient fabric.
Another effort to provide a close fitting and yet easily applied golf club head cover is disclosed in the patent to Koetting U.S. Pat. No. 3,548,908. This patent discloses a golf club cover having a head portion and two non-extendable parts extending downwardly from the head portion on opposite sides of a golf club shaft. These two non-extendable parts are connected to strips of elastic material on each side; so that the elastic is stretched to allow the cover to placed onto or removed from a golf club head.
A different approach to facilitating the placement of a cover on a golf club head is shown in the patent to Bellevue U.S. Pat. No. 3,133,577. This cover incorporates a gripping lip or extension on the open end of the cover. The cover of the Bellevue patent, however, is not made of stretch material; so that the lip feature functions simply as a handle to assist the user in placing the cover on a golf club head.
Knitted covers of material of the type similar to knit socks for personal wear could be used to provide a stretchable cover which fits over golf club heads of various sizes. The covering thickness of such a cover, however, is relatively thin, and does not provide the degree of padded protection for the club head which most golfers desire. The "look" and protection provided by padded head covers which are in widespread use is considered by most golfers to be the standard; and anything which does not have the protection and thickness of such padded covers is not considered adequate by most golfers.
It is desirable to provide a padded golf club head cover which is relatively universal in its application and which conforms to the shape of various golf club heads, from large drivers to smaller irons, and which provides the padded appearance and protection of prior art covers while also being easy to apply and remove.